Author: NY TIMES

Bob Kelley, who turned the Kelley Blue Book, a price list published by his family’s used-car dealership, into one of the world’s leading authorities on cars, trucks, motorcycles and pretty much anything else that gets you from point A to point B, died on May 28 at his home in Indian Wells, Calif., east of Los Angeles. He was 96.His son-in-law Charlie Vogelheim confirmed the death.The Kelley Blue Book started in 1926 at the Kelley Kar Co., a Los Angeles dealership founded by Mr. Kelley’s father, Sidney, and an uncle, Leslie Kelley. As one of the biggest used-car dealerships in…

A committee of advisers to the Food and Drug Administration voted on Wednesday to update the formula for the Covid vaccine ahead of an anticipated fall immunization campaign, now an annual step to try to offer better protection against versions of the virus in circulation.The unanimous vote by the 16 advisers recommends a formula aimed at combating the variant JN.1, which dominated infections in the United States in February, or a version of it. In recent weeks, JN.1 has been overtaken by descendants known as KP.2 and KP.3.In the coming weeks, the F.D.A. is expected to formally recommend a variant…

This week’s episode of Popcast (Deluxe), the weekly culture roundup show on YouTube hosted by Jon Caramanica and Joe Coscarelli, features an interview with the actress and downtown New York icon Julia Fox, speaking on a range of topics, including:Her appearance in the recent Charli XCX music video, “360,” with a slew of other “It Girls”Being the anti-“It Girl”Making decisions after starring in the movie “Uncut Gems,” along Adam Sandler, to right-size her fameHow motherhood has changed her relationship to adventureUpcoming acting projectsHow being transparent about her wild teen years shapes how she presents nowWhat she learned, good and bad,…

“We need vengeance,” said one marcher, Noam Goldstein, 15, a high school student from a small Israeli settlement near the Palestinian city of Hebron, in the West Bank. “They’ve committed attacks against us, so we need to be avenged. That doesn’t mean we need to kill every last one.”But he added: “I want this entire land to be ours.”After Israel’s 1948 founding, Jerusalem was divided in two: Israel controlled the city’s western neighborhoods, while Jordan controlled mostly-Palestinian East Jerusalem. During the 1967 Mideast war, Israel conquered East Jerusalem and later annexed it, a move not recognized by most countries, which…

A court in Russia on Wednesday sentenced a Russian American national to three and a half years in a penal colony after he had criticized the country, its leadership and its war in Ukraine on social media.Yuri Malev, 60, identified in court as a security guard at the MatchPoint sports complex in Brooklyn, was arrested in Russia last December. He was charged with “rehabilitating Nazism” over two social media posts that expressed “obvious disrespect for society” and “insulted the memory of World War II” and its veterans, the court said.Mr. Malev, the court said, admitted guilt and was sentenced in…

Ajax midfielder Lily Yohannes became the third youngest goalscorer in U.S. women’s national team history when she scored in the 82nd minute of a friendly against South Korea on Tuesday night.Johannes has already made history just on the playing field. When she entered the field, the 16-year-old became the youngest player to cap the national team since 2001 and the eighth player to make her debut before turning 17. Lily and Tiffany Roberts serve as the youngest goalscorers for the U.S. women’s soccer team.”It’s really a dream come true,” Johannes told TNT Sports after the USWNT’s 3-0 win. “I’ve rehearsed…

Last year, Ben Affleck made headlines for appearing to be in a bad mood. After opening a car door for his wife, Jennifer Lopez, he shut it with what viewers decided was more force than strictly necessary.Many claimed he also appeared to be sulking while seated next to his wife at the 2023 Grammy Awards. (He later said his expression had more to do with an unplanned bit by the event’s host, Trevor Noah.)Then there was Mr. Affleck’s unaccompanied appearance at the Netflix roast of Tom Brady in early May, followed the next day by Ms. Lopez’s arriving without her…

After two trips to the launchpad that did not end up going to space, two NASA astronauts finally headed to orbit on Wednesday in a vehicle built by Boeing, the aerospace giant.The first trip of Starliner, a 15-foot-wide capsule, with astronauts on board comes four years and six days after SpaceX, the other company that NASA has hired to provide astronaut rides, launched its first mission with astronauts to the International Space Station. Boeing is now set to also provide that service, but a series of costly delays repeatedly kept astronauts from flying the company’s vehicle earlier. SpaceX, once seen…

Elephant seals in South America died in massive numbers because the bird flu virus acquired mutations that allowed it to spread among mammals, according to a new study.The research offers the first genetic and epidemiological evidence of bird flu virus transmission among mammals. And the findings hold a warning: The virus, called H5N1, may similarly transform to cause large-scale infections in other mammalian species, including people.The bird flu virus is responsible for an ongoing outbreak in dairy cows in the United States. Since March, it has been detected in cows in nine states, and in wastewater from several others.The virus…

Yow couldn’t contain his laughter when recounting a Parisian scatological mishap that inspired a portion of “Moto(R),” one of several hard-driving rockers on the album’s back half. (“I had had some French coffee, and I had to poo,” he said.) And discussing “Lord Godiva” — the only song on “Rack” with roots in the band’s ’90s era, which comes complete with a beautifully beefy Sims bass solo — Yow highlighted the perverse misdeeds of its bloodthirsty protagonist. “They’re just so stupid and, I think, really funny,” he said.As much as “Rack” reprises the time-tested Jesus Lizard formula of pulpy lyrical…